1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for preparing a low calorie dextrin by treating pyrodextrin with enzyme.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In recent years, living standards have improved remarkably in Japan with, in particular, eating habits attaining substantially the same levels as those in Western countries. As a result, the average life span of Japanese people has been prolonged, thereby bringing about a rapidly aging society which, in turn, results in structural changes in disease sharply increasing the diseases of adult people. Thus, promotion of health is now one of the matters of greatest concern. In this connection, the Health and Welfare Ministry of Japan published a proposal of "Guideline of Eating Habits for Promotion of Health" in 1985 with regard to the eating the habits of Japanese people in general, and in which it was pointed out that one of the problems pertaining to Japanese eating habits was "excessive intake of energy."
On the other hand, in various kinds of processed foods, starch itself and most modified starches, such as pregelatinized starch, pyrodextrin, starch derivative, glucose, corn syrup solids and maltodextrin, are actually employed in large quantity. Caloric values of these starch products, however, amounts to about 400 Kcal/100 g, and accordingly only pyrodextrin is known among the starch products as a useful low calorie food material capable of saving the mentioned "excessive intake of energy."
The inventors of the present application have been aggressively engaged in research and development of dietary fibers, and based on the results thereof, already filed a patent application titled "Method for Preparing Dextrin Containing High Percentage of Dietary Fibers" and others. It has been heretofore known that pyrodextrin is a low calorie material, but is not adaptable to be employed as food material due to its stimulative taste and smell, coloring difficulty, etc. The inventors, however, have come to conceive an idea of employing this pyrodextrin as a new food material. To realize this new idea, the inventors have been further aggressively engaged in studies of overcoming the mentioned drawbacks of pyrodextrin aiming at a satisfiable low calorie food material therefrom while maintaining the property of low calorie as it is. The inventors further have attempted to develop means for easy mass production.